Frontiers Lecture: Investigating Clouds on Worlds Beyond Our Solar System

Tuesday, March 24, 2026

7 pm

An artists's depiction of a brown dwarf: a large red orb with cloudy horizontal stripes floating against a dark, star-flecked background.
NASA/ESA/Joseph Olmsted

In this Frontiers Lecture, join Eileen Gonzales, assistant professor at San Franciso State University in the Department of Physics & Astronomy, for an in-depth look at brown dwarfs, celestial bodies that are more massive than planets yet smaller than stars. Using data from the James Webb Space Telescope, Gonzales will explain the methods of approach for identifying molecules and clouds in their atmospheres. In exploring specific brown dwarfs, such as Wolf 1130C, we’ll investigate how scientists rely on unique features, such as biosignatures like phosphine, to better understand these objects which lie beyond our solar system. 

The Museum’s Frontiers Lecture series explores cutting-edge astrophysics topics. This program is recommended for ages 16+.

This program utilizes OpenSpace software supported by NASA under award No NNX16AB93A. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.